Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200

Gold Gotoh Pearloid Keystone Button Tuners
Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 features Gotoh’s pearloid keystone button tuners. With a gear ratio of 15:1, these Gotoh tuners deliver precision tuning in a durable housing that provides maximum protection for the gear and string post. All moving parts are cut for exact meshing, eliminating the possibility of slippage, with a special lubricant inside the gear box for smooth and accurate tuning stability.

“King’s Crown” Inlay and Elvis Signature Truss Rod Cover
The headstock inlay for Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 features a beautiful, mother of pearl “King’s Crown” inlay, designed exclusively for this custom model. The headstock inlay matches the inlays on the fingerboard and pickguard, and is pressed onto the face of the headstock using the same process as the Gibson logo. The black truss rod cover features a facsimile Elvis Presley signature in white.

Pickguard
The tortoise pickguard for the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is Gibson’s standard Super Jumbo shape, with a hand-engraved “King’s Crown” inlay made from genuine mother of pearl. As with all of Gibson Acoustic’s pickguards, the coloring, inlay, and binding are all done by hand.

Rosette
A rosette is the beautiful, hand-crafted circle around the soundhole, and can be one of the most ornamental elements of any acoustic guitar. It is also one of the most subtle and complicated woodworking decorations on any acoustic guitar. The rosette on the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is a double-ring rosette, with the main ring consisting of seven-ply binding, and the second ring three-ply binding, adding a stylish, understated elegance to the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200.

Ebony Fingerboard with Rolled Edges and Exclusive “King’s Crown” Inlays
The fingerboard of Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is constructed from the highest grade ebony on earth, which is personally inspected and qualified by Gibson’s team of skilled experts before it enters the Gibson factories. The resilience of this durable wood makes the fingerboard extremely balanced and stable, and gives each chord and note unparalleled clarity and bite. The Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200’s “King’s Crown” inlays are made of genuine mother of pearl, and are inserted into the fingerboard using a process that eliminates gaps and doesn’t require the use of fillers. The fingerboard also sports a rolled edge—instead of the usual right angle where the fingerboard surface meets the neck, Gibson Acoustic’s rolled edges are slightly beveled for an extremely smooth and comfortable feel, enhancing the playability of the King of Rock J-200.
Body Tonewoods (back, sides and top)
The top of the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is made from beautiful A-grade Sitka spruce, while the back and sides are constructed from A-grade Eastern curly maple, giving the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 all the rich, deep tone, clarity and presence expected from a Gibson Super Jumbo. Selecting the right wood, and the formula to dry it out, are two of the most central procedures to Gibson’s guitar-building process. Beginning with its first catalog in 1903, Gibson has assured its customers that every guitar would be built using woods with “the most durable, elastic, and sonorous qualities,” and today’s guitars from Gibson Acoustic are no different.
L.R. Baggs Element Active Acoustic Pickup System
Gibson Acoustic’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 comes equipped with the popular Element Active Acoustic Pickup System from L.R. Baggs, which features a low-profile undersaddle element—or transducer—that’s proven more stable and durable than many standard ribbon-type pickups. Combined with an onboard preamp with an unobtrusive and removable volume control mounted just inside the soundhole, the Element delivers performance not previously attainable from an undersaddle pickup. Its sleek and effective design removes unnecessary internal components to enhance the coupling between the pickup and the guitar, and improve the sensitivity of the transducer for a robust, lively, and natural acoustic sound with excellent dynamics and delicate high end. The Element works with a standard 9V battery, which is housed inside the guitar in L.R. Bagg’s new “Battery Bagg.”

Bracing
Every acoustic guitar made by Gibson features hand-scalloped, radiused top bracing inside the body, a feature normally found only in limited run, hand-made guitars. By scalloping each brace by hand, the natural sound of the acoustic is focused more toward the center of the body, enhancing the instrument’s sound projection. The lightweight bracing pattern inside the Elvis King of Rock J-200 Signature Artist Series acoustic is the same pattern used in Gibson’s first Super Jumbo in 1937. It is constructed to support and strengthen a very large surface, thus allowing the top more freedom of movement to vibrate and project sound. The placement of the braces inside the Elvis King of Rock J-200 also creates powerful, deep lows with full frequency range, producing the incredibly balanced, huge sound Gibson’s Super Jumbos are so noted for.

Features

Gibson Logo

The Gibson name has graced the most innovative and revolutionary acoustic guitars of our time—the Super Jumbos, the J-45, the Hummingbird, the Dove. There is no mistaking the classic, mother-of-pearl logo, pressed onto the face of the headstock. It represents more than a century of originality and excellence. There is simply no equal.

Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 features Gotoh’s pearloid keystone button tuners. With a gear ratio of 15:1, these Gotoh tuners deliver precision tuning in a durable housing that provides maximum protection for the gear and string post. All moving parts are cut for exact meshing, eliminating the possibility of slippage, with a special lubricant inside the gear box for smooth and accurate tuning stability.

The headstock inlay for Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 features a beautiful, mother of pearl “King’s Crown” inlay, designed exclusively for this custom model. The headstock inlay matches the inlays on the fingerboard and pickguard, and is pressed onto the face of the headstock using the same process as the Gibson logo. The black truss rod cover features a facsimile Elvis Presley signature in white.

The fingerboard of Gibson’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is constructed from the highest grade ebony on earth, which is personally inspected and qualified by Gibson’s team of skilled experts before it enters the Gibson factories. The resilience of this durable wood makes the fingerboard extremely balanced and stable, and gives each chord and note unparalleled clarity and bite. The Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200’s “King’s Crown” inlays are made of genuine mother of pearl, and are inserted into the fingerboard using a process that eliminates gaps and doesn’t require the use of fillers. The fingerboard also sports a rolled edge—instead of the usual right angle where the fingerboard surface meets the neck, Gibson Acoustic’s rolled edges are slightly beveled for an extremely smooth and comfortable feel, enhancing the playability of the King of Rock J-200.

The dovetail neck joint is one of the oldest—and best—ways of securely joining the neck to the body of a guitar. It is also a complex and expensive neck joint to build, but the result is a tight, locking connection that supports the neck at the proper neck-pitch angle, allowing the body and neck to become one solid piece of resonating wood, with no metal to impede vibration. This process is done entirely by hand, requiring patience and skill.

The top of the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is made from beautiful A-grade Sitka spruce, while the back and sides are constructed from A-grade Eastern curly maple, giving the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 all the rich, deep tone, clarity and presence expected from a Gibson Super Jumbo. Selecting the right wood, and the formula to dry it out, are two of the most central procedures to Gibson’s guitar-building process. Beginning with its first catalog in 1903, Gibson has assured its customers that every guitar would be built using woods with “the most durable, elastic, and sonorous qualities,” and today’s guitars from Gibson Acoustic are no different.

Every acoustic guitar made by Gibson features hand-scalloped, radiused top bracing inside the body, a feature normally found only in limited run, hand-made guitars. By scalloping each brace by hand, the natural sound of the acoustic is focused more toward the center of the body, enhancing the instrument’s sound projection. The lightweight bracing pattern inside the Elvis King of Rock J-200 Signature Artist Series acoustic is the same pattern used in Gibson’s first Super Jumbo in 1937. It is constructed to support and strengthen a very large surface, thus allowing the top more freedom of movement to vibrate and project sound. The placement of the braces inside the Elvis King of Rock J-200 also creates powerful, deep lows with full frequency range, producing the incredibly balanced, huge sound Gibson’s Super Jumbos are so noted for.

The tortoise pickguard for the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is Gibson’s standard Super Jumbo shape, with a hand-engraved “King’s Crown” inlay made from genuine mother of pearl. As with all of Gibson Acoustic’s pickguards, the coloring, inlay, and binding are all done by hand.

A rosette is the beautiful, hand-crafted circle around the soundhole, and can be one of the most ornamental elements of any acoustic guitar. It is also one of the most subtle and complicated woodworking decorations on any acoustic guitar. The rosette on the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 is a double-ring rosette, with the main ring consisting of seven-ply binding, and the second ring three-ply binding, adding a stylish, understated elegance to the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200.

The top of many “flat-top” guitars are under a lot of stress from the pull of the strings, which can eventually compromise the top. So, while most acoustic guitars are true “flat-top” guitars, all of the acoustics produced by Gibson in Bozeman, Montana have a radiused, or “tuned” top. Instead of being perfectly flat, a radiused or “tuned” top is raised slightly, and a special instrument is used to shape the top braces to the radius of the top. This process adds tension and strengthens the top, creating a less stressful joint where the top meets the sides and reducing the stresses of string pull. It also results in a “speaker cone” effect that maximizes sound projection, adding a significant boost to mid-range levels for a more balanced acoustic tone.

Gibson Acoustic’s Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 comes equipped with the popular Element Active Acoustic Pickup System from L.R. Baggs, which features a low-profile undersaddle element—or transducer—that’s proven more stable and durable than many standard ribbon-type pickups. Combined with an onboard preamp with an unobtrusive and removable volume control mounted just inside the soundhole, the Element delivers performance not previously attainable from an undersaddle pickup. Its sleek and effective design removes unnecessary internal components to enhance the coupling between the pickup and the guitar, and improve the sensitivity of the transducer for a robust, lively, and natural acoustic sound with excellent dynamics and delicate high end. The Element works with a standard 9V battery, which is housed inside the guitar in L.R. Bagg’s new “Battery Bagg.”

Applying a nitrocellulose finish to any Gibson acoustic guitar — including the Elvis Presley King of Rock J-200 — is one of the most labor-intensive elements of the guitar-making process. Unlike the polyurethane finishes used by many guitar manufacturers, a nitrocellulose lacquer finish is porous when cured, allowing the wood to naturally “breathe” and mature. Microscopically thin, the finish on a Gibson acoustic guitar first requires seven main coats of nitrocellulose lacquer. After drying overnight, the initial seven coats are then level sanded and given two additional coats. Left to dry for five additional days, the finish is then wet sanded and buffed to its final glass-like sheen. The time-consuming nature of applying a nitro finish has been employed ever since the first Gibson guitar was swathed with lacquer back in 1894. Why? For starters, a nitro finish means there is less interference with the natural vibration of the instrument, allowing for a purer tone. It’s also a softer finish, making it easily repairable. You can touch up a scratch or ding on a nitro finish, but you can’t do the same on a poly finish.

In general, a guitar’s binding serves as a cosmetic feature, adding a subtle elegance to any Gibson acoustic while hiding the joints between the top, back, and sides, and helping to protect the guitar’s body from any nicks or dings. But to see the process of putting the binding on a Gibson acoustic is to really appreciate the effort and attention put into each instrument. After the body has been glued together, the excess from the top and back are trimmed off and a groove is cut for the binding. The binding is then glued on and held on to the body using tape, and hung to dry. When the tape comes off, any excess glue is removed and the body is moved into the next phase of production. It has been done the same way for over 100 years, and is a fundamental part of Gibson Acoustic’s rich guitar-making history.